Where Safety Is Concerned – Be Smart And Be Aware (Safety Tips)
During the 2014 Miss USA pageant, the eventual winner Miss Nevada Nia Sanchez, stated the following:
"I believe that some colleges may potentially be afraid of having a bad reputation and that would be a reason it could be swept under the rug, because they don't want that to come out into the public," Nia Sanchez said. "But I think more awareness is very important so women can learn how to protect themselves. Myself, as a fourth-degree black belt, I learned from a young age that you need to be confident and be able to defend yourself. And I think that's something that we should start to really implement for a lot of women."
Seems reasonable enough, right? Apparently, there's been a lot of backlash from feminists.
Here's just a few comments from Twitter referring to Nia Sanchez's statement:
Women shouldn't need to learn to protect themselves against rape #missnevada educate and respect yourself as a woman #rapeculture
— Anna Beth West (@annabethwest) June 9, 2014
Of course women shouldn't need to learn to protect themselves from rape. The unfortunate fact is that rape does occur. Because it does happen, it's a good idea to be as well prepared as you can. So yes, educate and respect yourself as a woman and learn some tactics that can keep you and your loved one's safe.
I get that the college sexual assault problem can't be solved in 30 secs but still icky to pretend like self defense is the answer. #MissUSA
— Elisa Benson (@elisabenson) June 9, 2014
Nia Sanchez's doesn't say self-defense is the only answer to sexual assault. There are many changes that need to happen in society as a whole. Until that happens, there's no reason to not have an awareness of how to defend yourself should the need ever arise.
If #MissUSA2014 is the girl who thinks girls need to learn self defense to prevent rape, I'll be furious
— Colleen Gibbons (@GibbonsColleen) June 9, 2014
Teaching men not to rape and teaching women how to defend themselves can go hand in hand. They can co-exist. However, from the beginning of time, there has been violence. There are no quick solutions. The whole attitude of "women shouldn't have to learn how to protect themselves" is very idealistic. We also shouldn't have to have locks on our front doors, pin numbers for our ATM cards, or passwords to our banking websites. Obviously, we should just teach people that it's wrong to steal and rape. How well has that approach been working? Until there is a solution to stop all the scum of the earth from doing the things they do, it really is a good idea to lock your doors, keep your ATM pin secret, don't share your website passwords and learn some tips for defending yourself should that day ever come when you are in physical danger.
If you've never been attacked, it's very easy to sit in the comfort of your home and make comments about women not needing to defend themselves.
*Photo courtesy of Patrick Prather/Miss Universe Organization
This women's self-defense course has helped thousands of women that have taken it since 1988. For those fortunate enough that haven't been attacked, the increased confidence definitely makes the short investment of time worthwhile.